Could the Grand Rapids schools plan for Creston High students change again?

Creston High School, 1720 Plainfield Ave. NE. Grand Rapids Superintendent Teresa Neal's restructuring plans call for closing the school, relocating students to the Central High campus, and moving City High Middle School to the building. City's building at 1400
Fuller Ave. NE would close and possibly be sold.Matt Busch MLive.com

GRAND RAPIDS, MI- The debate about the relocation of Creston High School students continued at Monday's Grand Rapids school board meeting.

"I don't think there has been enough careful discussion and analysis, at least on the public level, on the possibility of continuing Creston in that building," said David LaGrand, a newly elected board member, who officially comes on board in January along with the Rev. Nathaniel Moody.

The school board is scheduled to vote on Superintendent Teresa Weatherall Neal's plan to restructure the district on Dec. 17.

The plan initially called for closing Creston, 1720 Plainfield Ave. NE. Students would go to Union, Ottawa Hills high school, or one of the career-focused Centers of Innovation programs downtown on the Central High campus. It was later decided that City High-Middle School, the test-in International Baccalaureate school, would relocate to Creston, and City's building, located at 1400 Fuller Ave. NE would close.

The change came after Creston Neighborhood Association officials expressed concern about leaving the huge building vacant and some City parents wanted the larger space with more amenities.

In response to students, Neal also agreed not to split up the Creston classmates, allowing them all to move to Central and finish high school together. But week after week students and parents continue to ask that they be allowed co-exist with City on the campus.

David LaGrandMLive.com

LaGrand, who has said he favors the overall plan, said he has changed his mind but only in respect to the Creston/City piece, as he has listened to the community. He wants the board to delay a vote on that part of the plan, in order continue to have discussions with the community.

Creston 10th-grader Charnice LaGrone, who is becoming a regular at the board meetings, received a long applause last night after she respectfully asked the board again to reconsider allowing the students to remain on campus.

"To me, it feels as if they are saying City is better than us, so they get to have our building," she told the board, saying she was glad at least the building would remain open, preserving its history. "I'm sad that we will probably have to leave. We may not be where City is academically right now, but I know if we push ourselves we can."

School Board President Senita Lenear told LaGrone how moved she was by her remarks and that others had expressed similar views.

The reason Creston was slated to close was because it had capacity for 1,397 students but only 600 students are using it. Enrollment was projected to drop to 400 next year because Neal's plan calls for consolidation of all Centers of Innovation programs at Central, including the engineering program at Creston. And while City only has 700 students, the district believes it can grow the program, one of highest performing in the state, at the location.

Some board members have generally accepted the administration's feedback that operating two school administrations on the same site would be too expensive. But LaGrand, a City parent, said the actual numbers have not been put forth publicly for the community to digest.

"I think it is very important that we talk about how much it will cost to keep Creston and City in the same building," he said, noting that he has heard there is resistance by some City parents to the two sets of student co-existing, but he he has none.

The board took no action on LaGrand's request but the subject could come up at an upcoming work session.

Email: mscott2@mlive.com and follow her on Twitter @Twitter.com/GRPScotty.